Culture

The Week in Games: The Heroes We Need

Batman: Arkham Origins launches globally on one day—Friday. There must be a ton of spoilers in it that Warner Bros. doesn’t want to go on the Internet in the three days between then and Tuesday, the typical US drop day. If you can’t wait to the end of the week for your superhero fix, LEGO:…

Sunday Comics: Kids These Days

Welcome to Kotaku‘s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon. Penny Arcade by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik. Published Oct. 16. Read more of Penny Arcade Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published Oct. 14. Read more of Awkward Zombie Brawl In The…

This Week in the Business: The Hardware is the Hard Part

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week …. QUOTE | “I think people might not grasp how hard that is, to develop a game at the same time as the hardware.”—Patrick Bach of EA DICE, on developing Battlefield 4 to launch with next-gen consoles QUOTE | “The right way to be…

Track: The Look | Album: The Engish Riviera | Artist: Metronomy Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to—and gaming to—at the moment.

Apologies If This Art Slaps You In The Eyeballs

Based in Brooklyn, artist Roxie Vizcarra creates imagery for video games. What follows is some of my favourite stuff I’ve ever featured on Fine Art Why? Partly because, for someone working in the games business, it’s different. Even in their spare time, most game artists draw the same stuff they would for work: spaceships, robots,…

Track: The Last Song Ever Written | Album: The Five Ghosts | Artist: Stars Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to—and gaming to—at the moment.

A Robot Hasn’t Made It Until It’s On The Front Cover Of A Magazine

Yong Yi Lee is a concept artist from Singapore who works in the games business. Shame those magazines aren’t real. I’d subscribe in a heartbeat. You can see more of his work at Lee’s personal site and CGHub page To see the larger pics in all their glory (or, if they’re big enough, so you…

Mirror’s Edge Felt Real, And That’s What Made It So Special

I could write about Mirror’s Edge all day. About how much I love it, how important it’s been to this generation of gaming. I could talk about its visual design, which remains as fresh and iconic today as it did back in 2009. I could take about Magnus “Solar Fields” Birgersson’s wonderful score. Instead, though,…

Track: The Zookeeper’s Boy | Album: And The Glass Handed Kites | Artist: Mew Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

The Glorious Fried Food Creations Of The Texas State Fair

There is no combination of foodstuffs that doesn’t taste better rolled into a ball and deep-fried. This turkey and stuffing roll with cranberry and gravy dipping sauces is just the first blip on the heart monitor of flavor available at the Texas State Fair. Gizmodo’s Leslie Horn braved the spattering grease of this year’s Big…

Video Game Lag In Real Life Is Still Annoying

Thank you for the Vine, Neat Dude and reminding us the worst moments of online gaming. This could be any game, really. Lag has no boundaries! If it lasted a bit longer, we’d probably see one of them appear right behind the other to get a killshot. Video game lag in real life [Neat Dude,…

No, Evil Soldier Man, I Was Not Making Fun Of Your Raspy Voice

Efgeni Bischoff is a freelance 3D artist who has previously worked for companies like Crytek and Guerilla Games. In between that, he’s also worked on Halo 4. So, yeah, if you want to see gorgeous images of armoured soldier men with fancy guns, you’ve come to the right place. You can see more of Efgeni’s…

Gone Fishin’

Colombian artist Victor Mosquera works for Volta, a design house that specialises in creating concept art for video games and movies. His professional work is for an unannounced project, but that won’t stop us looking at his impressive personal portfolio. You can see more of Victor’s stuff at his personal site and CGHub page To…

Even Space Marines Need A Break After A Hard Day’s Work

Lee Chang Woo is an artist who has done work for companies like SmileGate, the guys behind popular (and venerable) Korean shooter CrossFire. You can see more of his work at his personal site and CGHub page To see the larger pics in all their glory (or, if they’re big enough, so you can save…

Track: What is This Loneliness? | Album: Event II | Artist: Deltron 3030 Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to – and gaming to – at the moment.

Attack On Titanic Pokémon Cosplay

Last week’s Fancy Pants was a little lacking in dude cosplay. That’s being rectified this week. Five of the ten images we’re showcasing feature cosplayers who are rotton and made out of cotton, the highlights being a rare sighting of Italian superstar Leon Chiro with a shirt on and one hell of a complex World…

The Week in Games: Meet Swap

Skylanders Swap Force, out today on basically everything, is the week’s heavyweight release. We’re getting close to hunting season, too, and that means time for another Cabela’s game; this one sends you to Africa. Sunday •Skylanders SWAP Force (360, PS3, Wii U, Wii, 3DS) Tuesday •Wipeout: Create & Crash (360, Wii U, Wii, 3DS) •NBA…

Sunday Comics: Playing Tags

Welcome to Kotaku‘s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics, chosen by our readership. Please welcome newcomer Double XP to the lineup. Double XP by M.S. Corley and Josh Crandall. Published Oct. 7. Read more of Double XP Awkward Zombie by Katie Tiedrich. Published Oct. 7. Read more of Awkward Zombie Penny Arcade…

This Week in the Business: The Good, the Bad and the Medium

What’s happened in the business of video games this past week … QUOTE | “I do think we have to address the good and the bad our medium might do to consumers.”—Renowned designer Warren Spector, on how the game industry should take a balanced view towards what it does QUOTE | “I think about ……

What Pokémon Is

I write a whole lot about Pokemon here at Kotaku—and every time, at least one person asks what the deal with the franchise is. Why is it so big? Why do people care about it? What’s it about, even? Maybe you wonder these things, too—it’s an especially relevant set of questions now that Pokemon X…